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Friday, January 27, 2012

Meet Jett and Java!

No, we didn't receive two new wild cats at In-Sync Exotics! Jett and Java have lived at our sactuary for at least seven years. Unlike our lions and tigers, our spotted leopards enjoy living the quite life. You won't hear them roar and they won't try to "mark" you, but you will see two beautiful exotic cats that like to live high above your head when you come to visit them at In-Sync Exotics!

So, allow us to introduce to you Jett...

﻿...and Java!

﻿Jett is a yellow-spotted leopard and leopards are considered the smallest of the main big "4" wild cats (lion, tiger, and jaguar; excluding ligers and tigons). Often he is confused with Sam and Kodi, our two cheetahs, because of his coloring and spots. But if you take a closer look at these two cats, you'll see they are actually quite different.

Here are just a few physical differences between the two animals:

Leopards…

Are very large, muscular predators;

Spots are rosette in shape, covering the whole body as well as the face;

Have white eye-linings at the bottom of the eyes. The white color assists its vision at night by amplifying light which is reflected off objects around it, into the eyes; and

Claws are fully retractable, just like a "true cat.”

Cheetahs, on the other hand...

Have a tall and slender build;

Heads are quite smaller in relation to her body, when compared to leopards, making the cheetahs look more stream-lined;

Nostrils are large in size to allow maximum oxygen in-take for their muscles, while running at high speeds;

Tails are quite flat towards the end, acting as a rudder to balance it while running;

Have black "tear lines" which run from the eyes down to the sides of the mouth; and

Have semi-retractable claws.

Seeing spots yet?

In case you are wondering, black spotted leopards, often called "black panthers," have a recessive gene that makes their coat look solid black (occurs in black colored jaguars too). Although they may at first look solid black, their spotted pattern is visible from the right angle.

Did you know that:

Leopards can hear five times more sounds than humans, even the ultrasonic squeaks made by mice?

When it's time for a rest, leopards like to climb trees and sprawl out on the branches. They are the largest cats to climb trees regularly? You'll often find our leopard high up on their platforms looking down on us!

Depending on its habitat, a leopard’s coat can be short and thin or thick and warm.

Sadly, the wild leopards habitat has significantly declined due to hunting and human encrouchment. Today, the wild leopard can be found in sub-Saharan Africa; there are also fragmented populations in the Indian subcontinent, Sri Lanka, Indochina, Malaysia, Indonesia, and China. Because of its declining range and population, the leopards are listed as a "Near Threatened" species on the IUCN Red List.

Thankfully, Jett and Java call In-Sync Exotics home, where they love to romp and play with each other! You can learn more about these two beautiful spotted leopards by visiting their web pages: Jett and Java!

Jett hugging and playing with his "toy"

﻿

Java contemplating the meaning of life by staring into
his "pool"

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